Field
Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to sachets filled with content and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for making a filled sachet.
Description of the Related Art
Sachets are small permeable bags having enclosed contents, and are used for a variety of applications. For example, porous sachets filled with scented material, such as potpourri, are used for scenting rooms, drawers or closets. In other examples, sachets filled with beverage materials are steeped in hot liquids to prepare the beverage, such as tea bags used for dipping in hot water to prepare tea for drinking. Currently, consumers choose from a variety of pre-packaged sachets with different content, but the consumers have no direct control over the contents of the sachet, the size of the sachet.
For example, a wide variety of pre-packaged tea bags are available for purchase, but some consumers may prefer a particular blend of tea not readily available in prepackaged bags. Conventional equipment for making such sachets includes industrial tea-bag manufacturing machines that are large and expensive. Such machines typically process a large volume of content at a given time, and are therefore ill-suited for the direct use by most consumers of such pre-packaged tea bags, or for the purpose of making a small number of custom filled sachets. Currently, in order to create their own desired blend of drinking tea, consumers use an infuser such as a tea ball or a tea filter. Such infusers, require loose tea leaves to be loaded into the diffuser, and used wet tea leaves need to be removed from the diffuser. The process frequently results in particles of tea leaves remaining in the cup of tea. Further, such diffusers must be filled and emptied for each desired cup or pot of tea, and therefore need to be cleaned frequently, which is often messy and inconvenient. Some conventional techniques for making sachets require individual sachets to be filled manually, which is a difficult and cumbersome process for a user. According to such techniques, the user is further required to fold the sachet to close the top of the sachet. Sachets produced using such techniques may be inconvenient to use, because any error in the folding process may release of loose tea leaves into the beverage.
The convenience of being able to use sachet bags with custom content, of desired size or in desired quantity, especially for a domestic user is missing in the art. Therefore, there exists a need for a method and apparatus for making a filled sachet.